


The Last Unicorn

by Sea_Lily_Bell



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, カエルの為に鐘は鳴る | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru | For the Frog the Bell Tolls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-29
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:21:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22957843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sea_Lily_Bell/pseuds/Sea_Lily_Bell
Summary: What is a prince without his subjects?
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	The Last Unicorn

Prince Comal of the Sablé Kingdom could only see grassy plains as far as his eyes reached. The young Prince Richard had spread his arms out, as if he was a tour guide presenting an historical monument to a group of tourists.

\- “This place is called the Kanalet Ridge.” Prince Richard made a dramatic pause. “It was named after me, the great prince of the Custard Kingdom.”

Prince Comal’s eyes were blinded by the sun, as they reached the top of the cliff. He felt his heavy backpack weigh him down as he stumbled a little on the way up and almost lost his balance. Richard smiled softly at him and offered him a hand.

The image of Richard smiling as the wind played with his cape had etched itself into Prince Comal’s memory. As an adult he would look back at this childhood memory and remember his trip to Hyrule fondly. The young prince had turned his head away in an attempt to hide his rosy cheeks.

\- “This place is beautiful.” had Prince Comal wanted to say. “Just like you.”

But the young prince’s pride hadn’t allowed him to express his true feelings for his friend. He had grunted as he rejected the other prince’s extended hand. Then he tripped as he lost his balance and fell on his face. Prince Richard had laughed at him. It was that loud and condescending laughter that could only come out of Richard’s mouth. Prince Comal clenched his fists angrily and shouted at the other prince.

\- “There is literally nothing here! How is that supposed to be impressive!?”

His words didn’t seem to shake the other prince. Richard patted the ground next to him and gestured for his friend to sit down. Prince Comal, who was still upset, tried his best to not look at Richard but couldn’t help but sneak a peek at him. Richard had his eyes closed and sighed as he felt the chill from the cool breeze. The fresh air was so different here compared to the humid tropical air of his home Koholint Island.

Prince Comal blushed and jumped in surprise when the other prince placed his hand on top of his.

\- “Even the silence has a story to tell, Prince Comal. Just listen…”

The two princes sat there in silence and watched the sun set beyond the horizon. It was just the two of them and the open wilderness. Prince Comal thought, for a brief moment, that it would be nice to just stay like this for a while.

Suddenly Richard stood up, so fast that Prince Comal almost fell over. He whispered under his breath and pointed at something shiny and blue hiding in the tall grass. A glowing rabbit-like creature jumped out and left a trail of glittering gemstones behind.

\- “Do you see the creature over there? I think it’s a Blupee.” Richard gaped in awe as his eyes lit up with childlike wonder.

Suddenly a mischievous smile appeared on his lips. Prince Comal couldn’t help but return the smile, knowing what would come next.

\- “Let’s compete and see who can catch it first!”

And thus yet another princely adventure had begun. The two princes ran across open fields, rocky terrain and lush green forests, as if nothing else mattered in the world. They had both laughed as they filled their backpacks with memories.

Eventually Prince Comal had lost sight of his friend. Suddenly he realized how exhausted he was and sat down on a tree stump to rest. It had gotten dark already and he could hear an owl in the distance. The young prince, who was only wearing thin stockings, shivered in the cold. The chase didn’t feel fun anymore, now when Richard wasn’t there with him.

He got up again and tried to navigate around the forest but the fog of the Lost Woods was too thick. The small prince tried his best to be brave but slowly felt a chill crawl up his spine. He tried calling out for his friend but got no response.

Prince Comal suddenly felt his fear get replaced by worry. What if something had happened to his dear friend? As if by magic, the prince felt something light up inside of his chest. He recalled a dream he had last night, in which Richard had been captured by a large shadowy creature that looked like both a snake and a dragon. In his dream, he had been the hero while Richard had been the kidnapped prince who needed to be rescued.

Prince Comal unsheathed his sword and mimicked the pose Richard would do before every fencing competition. He aimed his sword skyward as if he was asking the goddess Hylia for a blessing.

In the mirror Prince Comal had practiced this pose and styled his hair to look just like Richard’s magnificent curls. He had hoped that the other prince would be impressed but his efforts went unnoticed. On top of that, he was so clumsy that he hadn’t even been allowed to enter the fencing competition. He only got to cheer quietly for Richard from the sidelines, although he would never admit that he had rooted for his rival to win.

Much to his disappointment, no monsters emerged from the shadows. The prince felt stupid and sighed as he put back his sword into its sheath. Maybe he had let his imagination run wild again. No wonder Richard kept making fun of him. If he could see him now, he would probably laugh at him again. Prince Comal bit his lip and looked down in embarrassment.

Suddenly the young prince saw a small green light float around in the air. He caught it and held it in his hand. It looked like some kind of bug. More and more lights appeared until the young prince was surrounded by fireflies. Prince Comal gaped in awe as he followed the trail of fireflies until he finally arrived at a meadow.

The young prince gasped when he saw a majestic blue creature that glowed in the dark. It was standing in the middle of a small lake and had two golden horns. It resembled a unicorn and was surrounded by hundreds of Blupees. The forest creature lifted its large head gracefully out of the water and the prince saw a wounded child on its back.

\- “Richard!” yelled Prince Comal without thinking as the rabbit-like creatures disappeared into the forest.

The mysterious creature stared back at him with its four glowing eyes. It had an otherworldly appearance, as if it was a spirit who didn’t belong in the land of the living. The prince’s hands were shaking as he reached for his sword. He couldn’t let this creature take Richard away!

Suddenly, he heard a weak cough. Richard slowly sat up on the mysterious creature. He looked like he was a prince from a Japanese folktale as he grabbed onto the creature’s long mane and slowly rode towards him.

Prince Comal stood there frozen in shock and awe as Richard stuck his handsome nose up in the air. He had successfully tamed a creature that was the last of its kind. The other prince had once again bested him and become a king tonight. Prince Comal wasn’t sure if he was jealous or impressed.

\- “Let’s go home. I will tell you everything that happened tomorrow.” whispered Richard who had a glassy look in his eyes.

Richard extended his hand once again and this time Prince Comal took it. He held tightly onto Richard and shut his eyes as he burrowed his face in his neck. They tried their best to avoid the sharp vines that whipped against their faces as the beast ran through the thick foliage. The powerful creature was faster than the speed of lightning.

The forest god carried them all the way back to Akkala where their worried families waited anxiously for the missing princes. What had been a fun adventure for the princes had turned into a huge search mission for Hyrule’s noble family who had lost sight of the visiting foreign princes, much to the dismay of the infuriated King of Sablé.

When he saw the mysterious creature appear together with both of the princes on its back, the king’s eyes widened in shock. As the forest god faded away, Prince Comal’s father gave him a brief scolding before he picked up both of the exhausted princes and carried them to bed.

Prince Comal was surprised when the other prince asked if he could sleep with him in his bed tonight. He nodded as Richard quietly crept under the blanket. Even though they were both exhausted, the princes couldn’t fall asleep. After a deafening silence, Richard finally spoke.

\- “I feel like…” Richard hesitated, unsure how to put his feelings into words. “I could sense that there was something me and that creature had in common.”

Suddenly tears rolled down his cheeks. Prince Comal crept up closer to his friend and gently stroked his cheek with back of his hand.

\- “What do you mean?” asked the worried prince.

Richard burrowed his nose in his neck and whispered in his ear. His voice sounded hoarse as he spoke through the tears.

\- “It made me recall a nightmare I once had. Everyone on the island had disappeared while I was the only one left.” mumbled the young Prince Richard.

Richard stared blankly into the darkness. In the corner of the ceiling there was a dead butterfly stuck in a spider’s net.

\- “What is a prince without his subjects?”

A small chuckle escaped Prince Comal’s lips. He rustled his friend’s hair and kissed his forehead.

\- “If you ever have a nightmare like that again, you can always sleep in my bed.”


End file.
